Two people found in crashed vehicle in West Kelowna confirmed as homicide victims

Kim Bolan, Vancouver Sun02.19.2013

RCMP officers search for evidence Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013 near the Terravita condos on Auburn Road in West Kelowna where a vehicle crashed into the building, the two occupants of the SUV were found dead. The RCMP Southeast District Major Crimes Unit and West Kelowna RCMP are currently investigating the death of two people who were found late Monday evening in a crashed vehicle.GARY NYLANDER
/ The Daily Courier

The scene Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013 at Terravita condos on Auburn Road in West Kelowna where a vehicle crashed into the building, the two occupants of the SUV were found dead. The RCMP Southeast District Major Crimes Unit and West Kelowna RCMP are currently investigating the death of two people who were found late Monday evening in a crashed vehicle. The deaths have been confirmed as criminal in nature and are being investigated as homicide deaths.GARY NYLANDER
/ The Daily Courier

West Kelowna resident Peter Raitt heard a loud thud outside his condo late Monday, but thought nothing of it until after police arrived.

He learned Tuesday that two people were found slain inside a large black SUV that had hit a lamppost at the side of his building.

"The police have interviewed us and there wasn't much I could tell them," Raitt said.

He doesn't think the vehicle in which the victims were found is associated to the condo complex in the 2700 block of Auburn Road.

"The vehicle is not one I have seen in the parking lot," he said.

RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk confirmed Tuesday that what had appeared to be a car crash was a double murder.

"Investigators located two individuals inside the vehicle who were deceased. Scene examination determined that their deaths were not as a result of the collision and have been deemed homicide deaths," he said.

Moskaluk said police are searching for a man that witnesses saw running away right after crash about 11 p.m. Monday night.

The RCMP's Southeast District major crimes unit and West Kelowna RCMP are working together on the case.

A police dog team was used late Monday to search for the suspect and followed a track for several kilometres, Moskaluk said.

The man appears to have run from the Terravita condominium complex down to a walking trail, then onto Bentley Road and Daimler Road in a southwest direction, Moskaluk said. The dogs followed the track to Bylands Road across Highway 97 ending in the Ross Road area near the Mount Boucherie Complex, he said.

Few other details were released by the RCMP Tuesday.

Moskaluk wouldn't comment on the victims' identity, including their age or gender, saying relatives had to be notified. Nor would he provide any information on the cause of death or whether the murders are gang linked.

Many Lower Mainland gangs have set up shop in Kelowna in recent years, leading to an escalation in gang violence like the August 2011 shooting a downtown hotel that left Red Scorpion gangster Jon Bacon dead.

RCMP is hoping the public can help with the most recent slayings. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 250-768-2880 or through CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Two people found in crashed vehicle in West Kelowna confirmed as homicide victims

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